Yahoo Finance Are Preformed Line Products Company’s (NASDAQ:PLPC) Returns On Investment Worth Your While?
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Today we are going to look at Preformed Line Products Company (NASDAQ:PLPC) to see whether it might be an attractive investment prospect. Specifically, we’re going to calculate its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), in the hopes of getting some insight into the business.
First of all, we’ll work out how to calculate ROCE. Next, we’ll compare it to others in its industry. Then we’ll determine how its current liabilities are affecting its ROCE.
Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What is it?
ROCE measures the ‘return’ (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. All else being equal, a better business will have a higher ROCE. Overall, it is a valuable metric that has its flaws. Author Edwin Whiting says to be careful when comparing the ROCE of different businesses, since ‘No two businesses are exactly alike.’
How Do You Calculate Return On Capital Employed?
Analysts use this formula to calculate return on capital employed:
Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets – Current Liabilities)
Or for Preformed Line Products:
0.11 = US$26m ÷ (US$364m – US$70m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2018.)
Therefore, Preformed Line Products has an ROCE of 11%.
See our latest analysis for Preformed Line Products
Is Preformed Line Products’s ROCE Good?
When making comparisons between similar businesses, investors may find ROCE useful. It appears that Preformed Line Products’s ROCE is fairly close to the Electrical industry average of 11%. Regardless of where Preformed Line Products sits next to its industry, its ROCE in absolute terms appears satisfactory, and this company could be worth a closer look.
Our data shows that Preformed Line Products currently has an ROCE of 11%, compared to its ROCE of 4.8% 3 years ago. This makes us wonder if the company is improving.
Remember that this metric is backwards looking – it shows what has happened in the past, and does not accurately predict the future. ROCE can be deceptive for cyclical businesses, as returns can look incredible in boom times, and terribly low in downturns. ROCE is only a point-in-time measure. If Preformed Line Products is cyclical, it could make sense to check out this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.
How Preformed Line Products’s Current Liabilities Impact Its ROCE
Current liabilities are short term bills and invoices that need to be paid in 12 months or less. The ROCE equation subtracts current liabilities from capital employed, so a company with a lot of current liabilities appears to have less capital employed, and a higher ROCE than otherwise. To counter this, investors can check if a company has high current liabilities relative to total assets.
Preformed Line Products has total liabilities of US$70m and total assets of US$364m. As a result, its current liabilities are equal to approximately 19% of its total assets. A fairly low level of current liabilities is not influencing the ROCE too much.
Our Take On Preformed Line Products’s ROCE
With that in mind, Preformed Line Products’s ROCE appears pretty good. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20.
For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
